Axa Assurance Maroc and telecommunications giant Orange Middle East have combined to jointly acquire a majority stake in Moroccan digital health platform DabaDoc.
The platform, launched by Zineb Drissi-Kaitouni and Driss Drissi-Kaitouni in 2014, offers services including appointment booking and remote consultation which are used by thousands of healthcare professionals in Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria.
The pair said the deal will accelerate DabaDoc’s growth and extend its services to other regions, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa. The transaction is expected to close in Q3 2021.
Zineb Drissi-Kaitouni, co-founder and CEO of DabaDoc, said: “DabaDoc is supporting the digital transformation of healthcare professions.
“Orange’s investment in DabaDoc and Axa’s renewed investment will strengthen DabaDoc’s growth ambitions through their presence in Africa and the Middle East. The pandemic has strengthened our belief that the digitalisation of healthcare services is essential and inevitable.”
Alioune Ndiaye, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, said: “We are delighted to commit to this ambitious partnership with Axa and DabaDoc to serve the healthcare needs of everyone in Africa and the Middle East through digital technology.
“We are convinced that the digital transformation is a source of progress and that e-health has huge potential. As a responsible operator on the continent, we want to contribute to this major social challenge, especially during a pandemic.
“The deployment of this type of solution in the countries where we are present will greatly facilitate populations’ access to healthcare services, which is essential to the continent’s development.”
Meryem Chami, CEO of Axa Assurance Maroc and Axa CIMA, added: “This is one of the group’s strategic priorities as part of the Driving Progress 2023 plan. This ambition is even stronger as we are facing an unprecedented health crisis.
“Through this partnership, we therefore aim to enable patients to access a better healthcare journey in Morocco and to support DabaDoc through its development in the CIMA countries as well.”
